Euphoria
by Miss Kitty cHaN
Summary: A continuation of the Ghost Hunt series starting where the anime left off. A haunted house, multiple ghosts, Naru's mysterious past, and an unrequited love? Rated M for violence
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer:

I do not own Ghost Hunt or any of the character (although I wish I did).

Authors Note:

I have watched all series in the anime but I haven't read the manga so please put up with my limited knowledge. Please review. Thank you!

Chapter One:

Mai was sitting in the office of the SPR reviewing and filing past cases for her narcissistic boss, Naru. It had been a typical day, Naru had totally ignored her unless he needed tea or her to do work for him. At 7 o'clock he had merely handed her a large stack of papers without any explanation whatsoever.

"That damn bastard," she muttered under her breath. "I am going to making him pay for this." She glared at the door of his office.

She had been organizing for two hours when it happened, she yawned. Her eyelids were feeling droopy. "Must stay awake," she moaned. She slapped herself. It was to no avail. Within 10 seconds she was asleep on the couch, her dying words being, "Forgive me, Naru."

Approximately an hour later Naru stepped out of his office and turned off the lights. As he headed to the door, coat in hand he noticed Mai asleep on the couch. "Dear God, what have I done to deserve her," Naru muttered sarcastically under his breath. He was about to wake her up, when he realized how peaceful she looked. Her lips were slightly parted and her face glowed in the pale moonlight.

He went over to the telephone and was about to call her home, when he remembered her parents had died. He turned back to her sleeping form, and he made a decision.

Mai felt something warm pushing on her. She was feeling so serene until this thing had started to bother her. She opened her eyes and saw Naru staring down at her.

"Ahhhhh," she yelled and jumped up quickly. "I'm so sorry Naru," she cried and bowed to him.

"I know you are," he said with his usual attitude, which reminded her how much she hated him. "I can't have my employees inconveniencing other people."

"Whaaaat?" Mai yelled. Naru held up a hand to silence her and continued.

"It is my understanding that you are staying with a teacher. However, this must be an inconvenience to her, so as an employee I will be offering you somewhere to stay."

"Thank you Naru- chan!" she yelled and hugged him, forgetting for a second that he ws Naru. Naru looked slightly shocked.

"But," Naru said hastily, "Of course your living expenses will be subtracted from your salary." _It's just like Naru to ruin a moment like that_, Mai thought.

He handed her his cell phone. "You should call the person you live with, and tell her." Her old teacher was not home yet, so Mai left a message on the answering machine telling her of the current situation and thanking her for her help. It was then she remembered that she would need to get her belongings.

"Uhhh, Naru, I need to get my stuff from her apartment." Naru simply nodded and picked up the car keys from their usual area by the computer. The ride to the apartment was awkward and silent. The only words exchanged between the two, was when Naru needed directions. Mai watched his steady profile as he drove to the apartment, silhouetted by the neon highlighted sky. She watched as the lights projected onto Naru's hair and face emphasizing his intense beauty. When she got there, she led Naru to her apartment. It was a slightly dilapidated looking building and was not in the best of neighborhoods. It only took them one trip to get all her stuff. She left a note on the kitchen table telling her old teacher that she would be leaving and to check the answering machine. The ride to wherever Naru lived was even quieter. Mai wondered what type of place he lived in. Was it an apartment or a house? She knew that he most likely lived with Lin- san. Just as she was about to ask Naru where exactly he lived, he pulled up into a parking garage for an apartment building. She was expecting some unusual building, but it was a plain regular apartment complex. It was from what she could tell a sort of gray- blue colour and it had lots of windows. Naru stepped out of the van and opened the trunk. They each grabbed a box of her belongings and Naru shut the trunk.

"We live on the fifth story," Naru said suddenly, making Mai jump. _So he did live with Lin- san then_, she thought. She followed Naru up the five flights of stairs. She was gasping for breath when she finally made it to the top. "I can't believe your this out of shape," Naru said coolly to her. Mai growled under her breath but followed Naru obediently to his room. He opened the door and Mai walked inside after him.

"What a nice apartment you have," Mai exclaimed admiring the cold and precise furniture. Naru ignored this comment.

"This unit has two rooms. One of them is mine, and the other will become yours," Naru exclaimed. Living in the same apartment unit as Naru- chan, just the thought of it made Mai blush. _Wait, does that mean Naru and Lin-san share a room?_, Mai thought startled. As if he heard her thoughts, Naru said, "Lin lives in the apartment adjacent to ours." Naru proceeded to take her on a quick tour of the rooms. When Naru explained that there was only one bathroom, and that the only entrance to it was from Naru's room, Mai was shocked, seemingly much to Naru's amusement.

"I think you should go ahead and take you shower," Naru said looking pointedly at her. Once she was alone in the bathroom she took off her clothes. "Is he trying to say I smell?" she asked herself. She sniffed herself, and then her clothes. "What is he trying to do? I don't smell at all! Damn bastard, he's probably just trying to annoy me." The shower was one of the most refreshing she had had in a long time. When she got out, she looked across the sink at the mirror. She stared intensely at her reflection and wondered if someone like her would have a chance with someone like Naru. She sighed. It was hopeless. Why did she ever have to fall in love with a guy like him? Forgetting exactly where she was she wrapped a towel around herself and walked out the door only to be confronted with Naru sitting on his bed reading something. Naru looked and she screamed and ran back into the bathroom. "Oh dear God," she said, "Please let me have remembered to bring some clothes in." She looked around the bathroom and only saw the clothes she had just been wearing. She hung her head in defeat.

She opened the door and peeked outside. "Naru- chan," she said softly. "I left my clothes in my room."

"Typical," Naru replied and got up to get her some. Mai couldn't help but notice his apparent amusement at her situation. He reentered the room and handed her, her clothes through the door. Mai looked at what he handed her and realized it was an overlarge shirt from her father and that Naru had failed to give her pants. Sighing, Mai quickly got dressed and left the bathroom. She walked over to Naru's bed and watched him read the book. She wondered if she should sit down beside him, or whether that would be to awkward. While she was lost in her thoughts Naru looked up and asked, "May I help you?" in his usual dismissive tone. Mai internally growled at him, but smiled at him.

"Well I was wondering where I would sleep, since the other room does not seem to have a bed." Naru simply stared at her.

"You can sleep on the couch," he said finally, and looked away.

"The couch?!?" Mai yelled, pleased when Naru winced slightly.

"Fine," Naru snapped back. "I will sleep on the floor and you can sleep on _my_ bed." Stupid Naru. He did this on purpose. If she took his bed she would look inconsiderate.

"Fine, I'll take the couch," she said glaring at him as she stalked out of the room.

"It was useless to get so upset in the first place," Naru said as she retreated. If Naru hadn't been offering her a place in his apartment and if he hadn't been her boss Mai would have slapped him then. But she had to content herself with imagining it.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A Little Past Midnight

Mai woke up and realized she was freezing cold. The couch was made of some sort of polished leather material and apparently did not absorb warmth. The skimpy blanket she had brought with her was basically useless. On top of that her throat was dry and sore. Mai got up and made her way unsteadily to the bathroom. There she got a drink of water. As she walked out of the bathroom she felt heat radiate from the opposite side of the room. As she went closer the heat she realized it was coming from Naru. When she got to his bed she touched his face and realized how warm he was. Tired and disoriented, she crawled into his bed wrapping herself around his warm body.

Later Naru woke to find himself embraced by a sleeping girl. He disentangled himself from her body and was just about to get up when he noticed a strand of her hair. Every time she breathed out it moved up and when she inhaled it moved back to its original position. It was hypnotic to him, the ginger strand of hair that brushed her cream coloured skin every time she breathed. He stared at it for such a long time he forgot exactly where he was. So it was slightly startling to him when she opened her eyes. She jumped up when she realized she was in his bed and he was staring at her. A slow smirk spread across his face.

"Enjoying the view?" he asked.

Mai blushed. "Naru, you really are a narcissist." She couldn't think of anything else to say.

(The end for now. Yay!)


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: the only characters I own are the ones I made up!!! (Koneko and Karasu)

Authors Note:

Regarding my OC's for this chapter

Their names are Koneko and Karasu

Koneko means kitten/kitty, neko means cat

Karasu means raven, kara means emptiness

This is just a note because I will refer to the meaning of their names later.

Chapter 2

After Mai was finished with school she walked directly to the Shibuya district where she worked. It was one of those days that was still considered winter, but so close to spring, but at the same time still not quite within reach. Mai smiled softly as her senses tingled with anticipation of spring, the sweet smells, the fresh air, and the soft pink cherry blossoms.

As Mai walked into the SPR she was wearing a slight smile. She could hear voices in the background. One she recognized as Naru's voice and the other was one she could not recognize. She let the sound of Naru's words wash over her. She loved the way he spoke. It was strong and at the same to was quite pretty. She caught herself when the other man cut in, his harsh voice contrasting with Naru's. Naru would be needing tea. God forbid Naru ever had to make the tea himself.

In the tiny kitchen of the office, Mai prepared the tea. This was the one part of the office she really loved. It was small, but welcoming in a way. And she loved the smell of tea the kitchen exuded. The whistling kettle brought Mai out of her reverie. She poured the boiling water into the cups and put them on a plate. She brought them into Naru setting one down in front of Naru and the man in front of him. The man was in his fifties, and was rather large. He was dressed in such a fashion that it was obvious he was wealthy. A silver top of the line watch glinted on his wrist.

Before Mai knew what was happening the man stood up, bowed, and thanked Naru. "That's our new case," Naru said to Mai.

"Eeeeh? What?"

"Apparently his house is occupied by a multitude of spirits. He is paying us a substantial sum to investigate and exorcise the ghosts. We are leaving tomorrow at precisely 7 o'clock am, so I would like you to call the others and ask them to join us."

_Not even a "Please Mai," or "Thank you, Mai," no acknowledgement of me whatsoever_, thought Mai huffily. She felt unappreciated. First she called Bou- san.

"Hi Bou- san," she said cheerily. "Naru has a new case. He would like it if you helped us."

"Hai Mai- chan," Bou- san replied. "When do we start?"

"Tomorrow," Mai said matter- of- factly.

"EEEEH? WHAAAT?" was what she heard when she help the phone arms- length form her head.

"Bou- san, I could have lost my hearing," Mai scolded.

"That is so like Naru. Asking us to come the day before the case comes," Bou fumed. "He seems to think we are at his disposal."

"Evidently," Mai sighed.

"Tell him I'll come. But only because I'm free."

"Yeah," Mai said laughing. "I have to tell everyone else still," she sighed.

"Oh, I'm with Ayako so I'll tell her," Bou- san said.

Now it was Bou- san's turn to hold the phone away from his ear. "NANI? You're on a date with Ayako?"

Bou- san laughed nervously. "I wouldn't exactly call it a date."

"What?? You don't consider this a date??" Mai heard Ayako yell in the background.

"Good luck Bou- san!"

Mai heard, "What do you mean good luck??" as she hung up the phone.

She sighed. Two more people to go.

o O O o

John and Masako's reaction were exactly as she expected. John exhibited slight surprise but his usual willingness to follow orders. For Masako, as soon as Naru was mentioned, she docilely agreed to come. For some reason Mai felt exhausted, although she had barely done anything. Perhaps it was just dealing with Naru that tired her out. If she hadn't liked him, things might have been easier for her. She wondered what she should do. Everything was already ready for tomorrow. Maybe Naru would like some more tea? The only jobs she had ever been given were getting Naru tea or doing busy- work. She stared outside. The trees were still bare. However, they seemed to have a bit of life in them. Spring was so close. Mai sighed again. She liked the idea of not doing work and being paid for it, but she felt guilty about getting away with.

Mai opened the door to Naru's office. "Naru- chan," she sang. "Do you need me to do anything?"

"What use would I have for you?" Naru asked. "And don't bother answering, that was a rhetorical question."

"You're in a bad mood. Have all your well thought out plans gone wrong?" Mai said mockingly, feeling bitter of Naru's treatment after all. "Anyways, didn't you hire me even though you has insurance on the camera?"

"You caused my assistant to become injured and left me without anyone to help."

"What about afterwards?" Mai asked, now really curious as to the real reason Naru had hired her.

Naru ignored the question. He had suddenly become reminded of exactly why he had hired her. He put the thought out of mind.

"Naruuuu," Mai moaned. "There must be something I can do. Anything. Let me organize files. Please. Naruuuu."

"I finished organizing the files this morning, because you had failed to do so last night," he responded curtly.

Mai sighed. She noticed she had been doing that a lot lately. Naru was getting more frustrating.

"I have never seen someone so desperate for work," Naru continued. "But if you really want something to do, you can refill my tea." Naru thought for a second. "You can make some cake. I would like some cake right now."

_What did he think she was? His personal maid? Was she supposed to call him master or sir or something?_ She wondered if Naru was serious about the cake. _Was Naru always serious? Perhaps he was joking. Did Naru joke? Perhaps this was the first time Naru had ever joked about something!_ It was then Mai decided she might be going insane. She was thinking about Naru way too much. Perhaps on the brink of becoming obsessive.

She stood in the kitchen looking around. _Were there even ingredients to make a cake? If there were what type of cake would Naru like? Ahhhh, Naru again._ She really had to stop thinking about him. She looked in the cabinets which were ultimately bare, besides tea cups and plates and concluded there were no ingredient for cake present except for sugar.

"Naru- can," Mai sang again, tentatively peeking into Naru's office. "There are no ingredients for a cake.'

"Take the van to get them," Naru responded automatically. _Damn, he was serious_.

"Naru."

"What?"

"I can't drive."

"Can you walk?"

Sigh. "Yes."

"I assume you can figure out the next logical step."

Really, Naru was incredibly infuriating.

o O O o

At the store Mai bought the basic ingredients for the cake. She wondered what flavour she would make it. She paused, scanning the shelves for any inspiration. _What type of flavour would Naru be_. _Would Naru like chocolate?_ She doubted it. She decided to stick with a simple vanilla. It did seem like Naru after all.

Mai got into the checkout line, looking around blankly. She automatically gave the cashier her items and took the bags and receipt. When she got outside she sat on one of the benches in front of the store. She dug around in her grocery bags looking for something. Finally she pulled out the small vial of vanilla. Slowly she twisted off the cap. She raised the bottle to her nose and inhaled deeply. She loved the smell of vanilla. It was strong and warm and sweet. It reminded her a bit of Naru, except for the sweet part of course. She put the cap back on, twisting it tightly into place. She placed it carefully inside the bag, and got up slowly and left.

o O O o

It took Mai two hours to prepare the small cake. It had been such a pain. She flopped down on the couch wiping the nonexistent sweat off her brow. She immediately stood back up realizing she still had to give the cake to Naru. She went back into the kitchen. She cut a large piece of the cake and put it on a plate. Walking over to Naru's office, she opened the door.

"Naru, your cake is ready." She handed the cake to Naru, feeling the slight caress of his fingers on her skin when he took the plate for her. He stared at it blankly for second. Mai realized she forget the forgot the fork.

"Sumimasen," she cried out quickly. She rushed back into the kitchen. She pulled out the utensil drawer and grabbed a fork, leaving the drawer ajar as she hurried out of the room. She handed Naru the fork, slightly breathless. She watched as Naru took a bite of the cake. He chewed slowly as if to process the exact flavour and texture of the cake, like he did with everything else. She wondered if she should leave now. Naru had not dismissed her so she decided to stay. She watched anxiously as Naru finished that cake.

Naru paused thoughtfully and put the spoon on the plate. Finally, he said, "That was good." Mai's eyes widened in shock. "Thank you." Mai surely had to be hallucinating. Or perhaps she was going insane. That would explain a lot. She grabbed onto the door frame, about to fall on the floor. She was going through the traumatic shock of having Naru thank her. Naru ignored her and stepped out the room. As he pulled on the coat, he called over his shoulder, "We should leave now."

"To where?" Mai said slightly dazed. The trauma had not quite worn off.

Naru simply stared at her. It was amazing how he could communicate with people by only looking at them, in his usual condescending way.

"Ah right, home," Mai said smiling. It was odd living with Naru.

Mai slept through the drive home. She was awoken up when Naru began to gently prod her arm. She yawned, and got out of the car. She trailed after Naru as he climbed up the stairs. She immediately showered and got dressed. When she got out of the bathroom she Naru sleeping on the bed. _He must have been tired_, she thought, smiling softly. She sat on the edge of Naru's bed and stared at him. She was perfectly happy just watching him sleep. She noticed that whenever he breathed out he made a slight whistling noise. It was cute. She pushed the hair out of his face. It was so smooth. She began to stroke his hair, and was strongly reminded of a nameless pet cat she had had as a child. The cat had been proud and independent but it could be sweet. The feel of Naru's hair reminded her of the soft dandelion fur of the cat. Mai floated off into her dreams on a dandelion seed.

Mai was woken up by the irritating beeping noise of the alarm clock. Her whole body hurt. She had fallen asleep and Naru, her back arched and her legs sprawled awkwardly off the side. She slid off the bed and onto the floor. As she bent forward she could clearly hear every bone in her spine crack. Mai groaned. Slowly she lifted herself up. She turned around to see Naru getting up.

"You really can't seem to stay out of my bed."

"Naru!" Mai said, quivering in an unusual combination of fury and extreme embarrassment.

Mai went to her room and got dressed. She was startled when she opened the door and saw Naru outside.

"Naru! What is it?"

He handed her a suitcase. "We are leaving today for the case. Which you have already probably forgotten."

"The case," Mai repeated. "Oh, the case…"

She took the suitcase and proceeded to pack her clothes. She didn't have much in the way of clothes, but she wasn't particularly concerned about that. She zipped up the suit case and scanned her room absentmindedly for anything else she might need. There was nothing. She picked up the suitcase and advanced into the foyer where she found Naru. The left the apartment and joined Lin- san in the hall before proceeding to the van. The items were placed in the trunk and they left to meet the others at the SPR.

Bou- san and Ayako were already there waiting for them. Bou had brought a van to transport the other members of the SPR. When Mai stepped out of the van she heard Bou- san and Ayako arguing. Apparently Ayako was still upset over Bou- sans comment from last night.

"What do you mean last night wasn't a date?!? You asked me out?"

Looking for salvation Bou- san called out to Mai and Naru. "Aaah, Naru, how nice of you to drive Mai here from her home."

"I didn't," Naru said simply. He walked away to retrieve his laptop. Bou- san stared at Mai. Mai blushed. It was so like Naru to leave her to explain all the awkward bits. But Bou- san was quickly distracted by Ayako, who was now carried away and had begun hitting him with her purse.

"Uh, see you Bou- san," Mai said and waved as she ran to the entrance of the SPR. She had suddenly remembered the remainder of the vanilla cake. Perhaps she could eat it on the journey there. Mai pulled out the foil and wrapped the cake in it. She hadn't noticed Naru come up behind her.

"You know foil causes cancer."

Mai jumped and turned around. When she saw Naru she laughed nervously. "I thought only crazy British people believed that."

Naru frowned, suddenly deep in thought. Mai watched him wondering what could be so thought provoking about foil. They left the building, Naru still deep in thought. Outside, they found Masako and John had also arrived. Naru gave direction to Bou- san who would be driving Ayako, Masako, and John there. Mai was going with Naru and Lin in the van. It was rather squished, but Mai got the seat by the window, which made up for it. She watched as the beautiful scenery became a green blur while the mist covered mountains in the distance seemed unmoving. She turned to the other side and watched Lin. He was a formidable person, but she wanted to like him none the less. She felt it would be to obvious if she watched Naru, after all he was only a couple of inches away, so she turned back to the window. She was so tired. Mai yawned once and promptly fell asleep.

When Mai woke up she found she was resting on Naru's shoulder and that Naru had been resting on her head. It was a somewhat painful position for her. But she didn't want Naru to wake up so she moved him so his head was resting in her lap. She saw Lin watching from the corner of his eye and blushed heavily. She could even feel her ears burn. She looked away, trying to ignore the fact that Naru was resting in her lap. How could she be so obvious like that? She wanted to push Naru back up, but that would be even more obvious.

o O O o

Suddenly Mai was jerked forward. They were in front of a huge mansion. Mai couldn't remember falling asleep. There had been a large lapse in time, from the time she had been staring out the window to the time they arrived here. Naru was no longer resting on her. In fact, he was getting out of the van. Mai quickly followed and opened her door and stepped out. She saw Bou- san driving his car up and stopping near them. Naru assembled them and then led the way to the front door. He knocked on it, and the man who had been at the SPR answered.

"Oh, you're here," he said and moved aside allowing them to enter. Mai stepped nervously into the entrance hall. It was large and rather extravagant.

The man stood in front of them and bowed slightly. He introduced himself as Amasawa.

Naru bowed in response. "I'm Kazuya Shibuya." He then motioned to Mai and Lin. "These are my assistants Mai Taniyama and Koujo Lin. The others are my associates who have come to help me on the case." As the man began talking Mai decided to look around some more. She saw a room just beyond the entrance hall. She could make out two figures. One was a tall figure and the other appeared to be that of a child. They stood in front of a large grand piano. They seemed to have noticed the entrance of the SPR , and began making their way towards them. As they stepped into the light of the entrance hall, Mai saw the smaller figure belonged to that of a young girl. She was the palest person Mai had ever seen. Her skin was white like fresh snow. Her hair was gossamer- like and her eyelashes reminded her of powdered sugar. When she looked at Mai, Mai saw that her eyes were a very pale blue. Mai realized with a shock she was albino. She noticed the girl also carried an umbrella. Mai remembered that albino people burned easily. The girl next to her was extremely tall. She appeared to be a bit taller than Bou- san. She had red hair and green catlike eyes. She was wearing a trench coat that strongly resembled Naru's, but was slightly more feminine. She carried a long cylinder- shaped package on her back.

The taller of the two stood in front of Naru and bowed deeply. "I'm Koneko- chan." Her voice was surprisingly childish. She motioned to the other girl. "This is Karasu- chan."

The small girl nodded. She bowed and said, "It is a pleasure to meet you." She had the voice of an adult. It was slightly unnerving to hear her speak. Mai had never heard people introduce themselves as – chan. She wondered what their last names were, and whether there was a reason they chose not to say them. She also noticed they had odd names. Almost if they had chosen the names themselves. They definitely stood out, Kitty and Raven.

"I'm Kazuya Shibuya.," Naru said and bowed as well. He did not seem to feel the need to introduce the rest of them.

As a small revenge, Mai said, "We call him Naru- chan." Naru turned to glare at him.

Koneko seemed overjoyed when she heard this. "Why do you call him Naru- chan?" she asked smiling.

"'Cause he's such a narcissist," Mai said ignoring the look Naru was giving her. She could hear Bou- san and Ayako laughing in the background.

The girls smile grew wider and she looked pointedly at Karasu. "He does seem like he would be a narcissist," she said.

Authors Note:

Yay second chapter down. Sorry if it is a bit choppy. I was working on it at a lot of different times. Also sorry if it's so long.

Also, I might now update for a week or so, I have finals coming up.

Just curiously what months are spring in Japan.

Also, is it just my imagination or is a Lin- san a lot like Hatori from Fruits Basket. They both have the same stoic personality, and the same hair thing.

Anyhows thank you for reading, and for those of you who review, etc. De arimasu!


	3. Chapter 3

**Authors Note Thingy:**

Firstly, I want a beta-er person for christmas (sad face). (I sort of realized this with the failure of my one shots.)

Sorry for the false update. I realized my page breaks had been deleted and that I had made a couple of mistakes so I wanted to correct that. I don't really know where I am going with this, usually with things I write I know how I want them to end this. I was thinking I might make this a tragedy, but I decided I would do a separate one. So forgive me if it seems like I am headed towards like an endless abyss of crap and horrible stories and such. I need inspiration and a break.

Thank you for reading and reviewing everyone!!! (I love you more than you will know).

Chapter Three

Karasu and Koneko had managed to integrate themselves into the SPR with uncanny ease. It was almost as if they had been there the entire time. Koneko even helped Naru take in the cameras, even though that was Mai's job. Naru seemed to be slightly frustrated with her appearance. Mai thought she saw a hint of annoyance on Lin's face when she watching the cameras over his shoulder, but she could have been mistaken. Karasu usually sat in a corner reading a book making no attempt to help the others. When asked a question she answered in as few words as possible and then turned back to her book. However, what she did say was important and helpful. She seemed to have gained an in- depth insight into the spirits from Amasawa. She dictated where the cameras were to be placed from her corner, and to Mai's amazement Naru listened to her. Apparently, there were four spirits inhabiting the house. One was a spirit that would sometimes play the piano in the room next to the entrance hall. The other was a young girl who would often be seen haunting the room outside the dining hall. Also, there was supposed to be a ghost in the main dining hall, which had been abandoned resultingly. A woman and her daughter had been attacked and murdered there. Lastly, a bathroom on the upper floor was inhabited. A young girl had killed herself there around a decade ago. Masako confirmed all of these hauntings but claimed she could only since their presence and could not see them for some reason. It seemed to Mai, this case would be difficult.

"I believe the spirits here may be dangerous and potentially life threatening," Naru suddenly announced. "We will form groups of three, and you must never separate no matter what the circumstances are." He paused and looked pointedly at Mai. She suddenly felt upset, it wasn't totally her fault Masako had decided to go off on her own on one of the other cases, and didn't he know she already felt horribly guilty? Naru turned back and continued. "Miss…" he looked at Koneko.

"I'm far too young to be called Miss," Koneko said smiling. Naru stared at her and then turned back to the others.

"Koneko, Hara, and Takigawa will be in one group. Matsuzaki, Mai, and Karasu will be-"

"No," Koneko said suddenly. She scowled darkly at Naru. Mai was shocked at her sudden change in mood. She had been so willing to follow all of Naru's directions only a few minutes earlier. "Kara- chan and I will be our own group."

"Seeing as to how neither of you, have any visible abilities to protect yourself from spirits, I would think it highly unwise and dangerous for you two, to be alone," Naru responded.

"We both know protective spells," Koneko snapped back. "And I don't ever remember being under your jurisdiction." Karasu followed her as she left the room.

Naru turned back to the members of the SPR as if nothing had happened. Mai pondered what exactly were Koneko and Karasu's abilities if they had any. "Hara and Matsuzaki will be a group. John and Takigawa will be a group. Lin, Mai, and I will be another group." This made Mai very happy, being in a group with Naru. She noticed Masako watching her with a jealous gleam in her eye. Mai felt giddy with triumph. It wasn't that she disliked Masako, it was just they were fighting over the same person, Naru. But then as Mai thought it over, that meant she would share a bedroom with Naru _and_ Lin- san. And she would be sharing a shower with Naru _and _Lin- san. Despite the fact she liked Lin- san, she could not deny he intimidated her quite a bit.

She looked at Naru hoping for some kind of reaction, or something that would let her know what he was thinking. But Naru had his usual mask on. Lin checked his watch.

"It's 10 o'clock," he told Naru. Naru picked up his laptop and left the room wordlessly. Lin followed. Mai watched as they left, and then realized she was supposed to be in their group. She waved goodbye to the other members of the SPR and ran after Naru and Lin.

"Mai, don't fall behind," Naru said without looking at her.

"Well maybe you should wait for me," she fumed. After a long silence she said, "How do you know where we are supposed to sleep?"

"If you had been more attentive and had listened to Karasu earlier then you would know where the rooms were." Why was Naru in such a rotten mood. He had been much harsher as of lately. Perhaps he was annoyed with her, and the only reason he hadn't fired her yet was because her dreams had been useful. Mai was shocked with this realization. She felt sick to her stomach. Perhaps, he really did like Masako after all.

"Mai…" Lin- san said softly.

"Eh, what?" Mai said quickly.

"You don't look well."

"Ah, I'm fine," Mai said sloppily pasting a fake smile on her face. Naru had stopped to turn around and stare at her too. There was something in his eyes. _Was it concern? No, it couldn't possibly be, he liked Masako after all_. Mai shook her head to rid herself of these thoughts. "Yeah, I'm fine," she repeated.

They stood there watching her for a couple of seconds. Mai tried smiling more convincingly. Naru turned around and started walking again. He only took a few stops before he stopped in front of door. Mai had not been expecting it and crashed into Lin.

"So- sorry Lin- san,: Mai stuttered from where she lay on the floor. Lin extended his hand to Mai and helped her up. Mai entered the room. Naru and Lin glanced at each other before stepping in after her. There were three beds in the room. Mai didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed. The bathroom was at the far corner of the room. Lin- san, without bothering to consult Mai or Naru, went ahead into the bathroom. He shut the door behind him. Mai heard him turn the tap on. She turned to Naru. He had occupied the bed next to hers, and already had his laptop out and was typing away on it. She tried to think of some way to broach the subject of his dislike of her.

Mai suddenly burst out, without any thought whatsoever, "Naru I'm sorry if I have not been a good assistant recently. I'm sorry if I annoyed you or upset you. I didn't mean it. Please forgive me. Gomen nasai. Gomen nasai!"

Naru stared at her as if she had to be the asinine person ever. Mai felt idiotic. How could she just go and say everything so rashly. "Why would you think that?" he said looking at her, perfectly composed.

"Oh… its just that you've been so… impatient… and harsh lately. I thought it was my fault because I'm such a bad assistant."

"It's not your fault. I've just been under a lot of stress lately, and inconvenient things have come up." She wondered if he was talking about Koneko. "Also, we have no witnesses for any of the spirits. The only words we have to go by are those of Amasawa, and he hasn't even seen the spirits first hand. His maids, who left shortly after seeing the spirits, did not leave any contact information and we have been unable to track them down." She thought she saw a hint of a smile on Naru's face when he looked at her. She blushed, looking down at the deep plush carpet. She pushed her feet down into it and felt its softness. She wanted to be near Naru. She felt the sudden urge to wrap herself around him and never let go. To absorb him until he became a part of her. She was overflowing with something she could not control. Her hand clutched at her heart as she felt a sharp lonely pain. Naru watched her from over the screen of his laptop. Her hand dropped to her lap and she flopped back down onto the bed. She wanted to sleep in the same bed as Naru. She didn't even have to be touching him. She just wanted to feel the warm radiating off of him that she could not find in his personality. She felt so awful and so wonderful at the same time, and it was killing her. She stared at the ceiling as lay eagle- spread on her bed. She didn't know how long she had been staring at the ceiling but suddenly Naru was saying, "Mai, your bath." She jumped up.

Lin had already finished his shower and so had Naru. It appeared Naru had just finished. He was slightly red- skinned and wet. He wore his usually black pajamas that emphasized the paleness of his skin, or in this case, pinkness. Mai got up and grabbed her pajamas. She went into the bathroom and locked the door behind her. The bath was horribly refreshing. She felt like she was being heated until she was raw and then reborn. This was so much better than the showers she had been used to. She stood up, the water making rivulets and dripping off her skin. She dried herself and put on her clothes. When she got out Naru and Lin were still awake. Lin seemed to be relaxing. He was laying on the bed staring and the ceiling hands behind his head in a very uncharacteristic way. Naru was, as usual, working on his laptop. He seemed to be in a rather pensive mood. The silence was overwhelming, the only noise was the occasionally taps on the keyboard of the laptop. Mai lay on her bed, her body curled up into fetal position as she listened to the taps on the keyboard. They were uneven and it bothered her. She wished they would be in rhythm so that she could ignore them. But they were always out of place. She wanted someone to take the first step and turn off that light. But no one seemed to be willing to make that initial step. Especially not Mai. She wondered why she could not get herself to say anything. It was just a few words. It was only a light. But it seemed taboo to break the silence, where the only thing allowed to punctuate it was the sound of Naru's fingers pushing down on the keys. She lay there, her mouth open, on the verge of saying something, the words on the tip of her tongue, yet unable to say it. Perhaps she could go to sleep with the lights on. She was about to resign to the silence, when she suddenly thought that she did _not_ want to go to the sleep with the lights on.

She sprang up and announced, "I am going to turn the light off." Naru and Lin both stared at her- it was not exactly the major announcement of the year.

"I'm still working," Naru said.

"I want to go to sleep. Why do you have to have your way all the time?" Mai was getting very worked up. "Why can't you think about others? Why do we--"

"Okay, you can turn off the light," Naru said simply. Mai felt suddenly drained of energy, how could he work her up like that and then just suddenly give in. It was as if he was playing with her emotions. _He probably was, damn bastard_.

Mai turned off the lamp and climbed into bed. On either side of her she heard breathing. She turned to look towards Naru. He was still on his laptop, which emitted a florescent glow giving him a rather sickly look. _Baka_, she thought. She turned over looking towards Lin- sans bed. Lin had been watching her. Her body illuminated by Naru's laptop. He had seen how she turned to look at him, loving scorn on her face. When she turned back to him, he had quickly closed his eyes. He wondered if Naru had put her in their group on purpose. Did he have any ulterior motives besides observing her and her dreams? And why had _she_ turned up?

Lin fell asleep, his mind still clouded with questions. On the other side of him, Mai was already asleep. Naru was still on his laptop.

o O O o

Mai was in the piano room playing the piano to the man standing behind her. The song was perhaps one of the most beautiful and heartbreaking melodies she has ever heard. She felt an extreme love for the man standing behind her. Although she could not see him, her mind flooded with vibrant emotions when he put a warm hand on her shoulder. She finished playing and looked behind her smiling. It was Dream Naru. His face was so loving, and he smiled so warmly at her. He bent down and kissed her. She felt her body melt.

"Suzume," he whispered into her ear. "I will see you after the war ends. I love you." As he left, he turned to smile at her. _I will play this song everyday and pray until the day that he comes home_, she promised herself. And everyday after that she played the same haunting tune on the piano, and everyday she prayed for his safe returns. Weeks turned to months, and months turned to years. The war was over. _Where was he?_ She continued playing and praying. Soon that was all she did. She neglected eating and sleep. All day she played on the piana, even after fingers became numb and the song became slow and clodding. Even as blood dripped down onto the keys and she felt her stomach eating itself. She played on. She became that melody. She was that melody, always sad, always waiting.

o O O o

Naru was suddenly woken out of his sleep by a soft sound. He opened his eyes. He heard it again. The soft sound of a girl whimpering. _Mai_. He quickly got up and went over to her bed. It was definitely coming from her. Her whimpers began to escalate into crying.

"Mai, Mai, wake up," he said, gently shaking her. Her crying changed to sobbing. He heard Lin get up in his bed. "Mai, its okay, wake up." He pulled her up into sitting position. She gasped and opened her eyes. Tears still stained her cheeks.

"Naru," she cried, and she grabbed his pajama shirt. He could tell she was still crying, by how fast his shirt became wet.

"Mai," he said. He didn't know whether to push her back or let her be. He decided to let her continue to cry into his shirt. She probably needed some form of comfort. It had probably been one of her psychic dreams. He gently placed his hand on her head. As he had calculated, she calmed down. He decided to try to let her tell him her dream on her own.

She gasped for a while, unable to speak. Finally, "I dreamt I was this woman, and that the man I loved had gone off to war. And he said he would come back. He said so!" Mai broke into a fresh wave of hysteria. Through her sobbing she said, "He never came back. He didn't come back." She wailed, more tears pouring down her face.

"Mai, it was a dream. That wasn't you. That is what happened to another woman." Mai stopped crying and began hiccuping.

"It was so real," she managed to say between hiccups. Lin watched her, thinking.

"You should go back to sleep," Naru said. "You can tell me more about it in the morning." Mai nodded, and lay back down. She listened and heard faint footsteps, the rustle of sheets, and the slight groan of bed springs. She waited, listening. She heard Lin breathing deep uneven breaths. But they gradually slowed into an even, shallow pace. He was asleep.

"Naru?" she whispered at the ceiling. She felt a slight pause in the air.

"What?"

"I don't want to go to sleep anymore." Her throat felt dry and it stung. It was true. She didn't want to go to sleep. She feared the dreams she might have. People died here. She would dream about their deaths. She would see how each and everyone one of them had died. Perhaps she would feel it. The ice blade sink into her neck, or the feeling of water filling your lungs, or perhaps the feelings of lying on the bathroom floor watching all the life bleed out of her. Her pulse quickened. She did not want to dream these things. She did not!

Suddenly Naru was over her. "Mai, calm down," he said gently yet forcefully. She realized she had breathing heavily in fear.

"Naru," she cried. "I can't… I don't want to do it anymore."

"Mai, I can't force you to do it. But you should. No one else can do it. This is what you came here for, right? Ghost stories? They can be scary and horrifying, but aren't they good when you stick them out?" He was right in a way.

He got up to leave, as if the matter was settled. She managed to find his arm in the darkness and clutched at it. "Naru, don't leave," she said tearfully. She was so emotional. But he couldn't deny her when she was like this. And God knew Naru couldn't have his assistant having an inconvenient emotional breakdown while they were on a case. So Naru stayed.

o O O o

When Lin woke up the next morning, he saw them there and Mai's bed. Both were fast asleep. Mai's head was buried in Naru's chest. And Naru had one arm draped simply over her waste. But Lin knew there was much more to it than that. He wondered who he should wake first. Naru would be embarrassed, although he might not show it, about being caught in a position like that, and Mai might die from shock from being found in bed with Naru. He decided to wake them up at the same time.

With a mischievous grin Lin called out, "Its morning." Mai jumped up a immediately. She looked to her left and saw Naru. She looked at the foot of the bed and shrieked upon seeing Lin. She attempted some sort of escape but tripped on the sheets and landed face down in the deep carpet. Naru's eyes were stilled closed. "I hate you Lin," he moaned. He debated throwing a pillow at Lin, but decided it would be childish, more like something Mai would do. Mai. He looked over and saw a bright red Mai pulling herself off the floor. _Was that noise snickering?_ He quickly turned to Lin. Lin had his back turned and some laughing noises were escaping him despite his best attempts to quell them. When Lin dared take a look back he noticed Naru giving him what could best described as a _death glare_. This managed to quiet him for a while. But as Mai was getting dressed Naru could still hear small giggles escaping him and some unintelligible words that sounded suspiciously like "same bed."

As they were walking to base Lin noticed Naru staring at Mai's lower anatomy. Specifically her butt. It seemed her particularly shirt skirt (how many of them did she have!?) had ridden up on her waist and the bottom part of her panties was showing. He wondered if Naru was feeling the call of adolescence. This was rather unprecedented. But then again Naru probably was wondering what he should say to bother Mai the most. This was confirmed when Naru, who had felt Lin watching him watch Mai, said, "What exactly do the guys at your school say about your skirts, Mai?"

"Huh, what do you mean?" Mai said laughing as she continued to walk to the base. She froze suddenly, _Was it possible…_ She looked back and down. Mai let out a harrowing scream. "Na- na– Naru, you baka! Why didn't you tell me earlier? Whyyy? I've been walking around for the past minute like that," she said pulling her skirt down and crossing her legs. Lin looked away.

"Your lucky I bothered to tell you at all," Naru said. He pushed past her and kept walking towards the base. Mai fumed. She wanted revenge. Badly.

**Authors Note:**

Ahhhh finally. This was hell to get out. I was thinking about whether to make my chapters longer or shorter. I'm not sure. But anyways thanks for reading and please review!! Nii Pah!!!

On a more hopeful (?) note, or perhaps the word would be light (or something)… I'm ranting. I am waiting for the 23rd episode of Higurashi no Naku koro ni kai (when they (the cicadas) cry answers). If this arc does not have a happy ending, I will be so upset. I need a happy ending. Rena has to be like the best character ever, and Hanyuu is the cutest. Sorry for that I just had to get that out, and since I mentioned Higurashi I am obligated to say I would not recommend it for children under the age of 13.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note 

Firstly I want to thank my new beta- person Ayjah (yay!).

I was feeling very uninspired lately. 20 ghost hunt amv's, a few bags of chocolate, a huge snowman cookie, and a very tearful Pan's Labyrinth later I was able to get this out. Yay for sentimentality and sugar!

Chapter 4

Mai, Naru, and Lin entered the base and to Mai's surprise Koneko and Karasu were there chatting with Ayako and Takigawa as if yesterday had never happened. Naru on the other hand did not seem surprised at all. He took his place in front of the others and, as expected, everyone else quickly quieted down upon his entrance.

"Last night Mai dreamed that the spirit possessing the piano was a young woman who's lover had died in the war," Naru announced. _He can't let me say it myself_, Mai thought, slightly upset. Naru continued, "This proves my original assumption, that it was the ghost of a lonely woman, correct."

"I was thinking that too Naru!" Koneko announced happily. "They say great minds think alike," she added suggestively.

"I would rather my mind not be associated with yours." _Wow, usually Naru waits a few days after he meets someone before he starts insulting them_. However, Koneko didn't seem very put off by Naru's insult.

"You are such a narcissist," she said laughing.

Naru ignored her. "John, Takigawa, and Matsuzaki, would you like to try to exorcise the spirit?" They were all predictably agreeable to this idea. Naru led the way to the room and the others followed him quietly with an occasional whisper, except for Koneko who was happily talking to an unresponsive Karasu. As they passed through the entrance hall, Mai paused, turned, and looked up through the large window above the door. She could see the silhouetted leaves of the large tree outside. This was a beautiful house. It made her sad really. She wished she could live in a house like this, large spacious, and with beautiful scenery.

Karasu tugged gently on her hand. Mai had been left behind. "Aha, sorry," she said. "I got a bit distracted."

As she entered the room the others were in, she heard Masako say, "I can't get a clear feel for the spirit, it seems she is repulsed by our appearance and is avoiding us. Naru frowned slightly. "If she stays away like this we will not be able to exorcise her."

Koneko went up to the piano and traced the fine wooden engravings on the surface. Slowly, she lowered herself onto the piano bench. She closed her eyes and poised her fingers above the keys. There was a slight pause and the then she pushed a single key down. The lone note resounded throughout the room. It was completely quiet as she began to play. Mai recognized it as the piece the woman had been playing in her dreams. Each key sounded like a heart breaking, beautiful and piercing. In fact, it seemed even more beautiful and tragic than it had when she first heard it. Each note felt like a stake through her heart, but it was so lovely. There was a slight ping each time a drop of blood hit the keys. No it was tears this time. The translucent liquid left puddles of light on the piano. Before Mai knew what was happening the song was over and she fell to her knees.

"That song…" she said. Naru watched as Bou- san and John rushed over to her.

"Mai, was that the song in your dream?" Naru stood over her.

"It was. How did she know it?" Mai looked around the room. Where had Koneko gone? The only trace she had been there were the still moist keys. Karasu was gone as well. "She's gone…" Naru did not seem surprised. Takigawa helped her get it up.

"What next Naru?" Takigawa said with his usual smile.

"Masako, would you mind checking the areas in question for any paranormal activity again?" Naru said looking at Masako.

"Of course Shibuya- kun," Masako said smiling slightly. Mai scowled. How could Naru like someone like _her_?

A half an hour later they were at the same place they had started at. There were no further supernatural occurrences. Mai got the feeling this case was going to be rather difficult. Ayako and Masako were bickering behind her. Ayako was teasing Masako for her inability to sense the spirits and Masako was making snide remarks about Ayako's usefulness.

When they came back to the base Karasu and Koneko were waiting for them with something that faintly resembled lunch.

"Where did you go?" Takigawa asked.

"Look, I made lunch!" Koneko said cheerily, ignoring Bou- san. It appeared to have once been ramen, drowned in some undeterminable green liquid.

"Um, I don't really feel hungry right now," Mai said laughing nervously. Masako turned the same colour as the soup.

Koneko's eyes began tear up. "I spent so long trying to make something you would like." Her face turned a splotchy red.

"Oh, I'll eat it. It looks good!" John smiled nervously.

"Yay, a test subject!" Koneko sang as she spun around the room.

_She had been acting?!? Well she is not even trying to be subtle about in anymore_, Mai thought.

John paled but grimaced in determination. He took the chopsticks Koneko handed him. Bracing himself he pulled them apart with a snap. Slowly he lowered them into the soup.

"John- san, you don't have to!" Masako cried.

"Its okay Masako- san," John said bravely. Lin produced a first aid kit out of nowhere.

"Lin- san!" Mai protested.

"I just want to be ready." John gulped upon hearing this. He pulled up some noodles covered in the thick green slime and put them to his lips. There was a collective intake of breath. Slowly, John put the noodles in his mouth and closed his lips around them. He put the chopsticks down and chewed thoughtfully and swallowed.

"This is pretty good!" John said brightly.

"Nani!?!" Takigawa yelled and grabbed the chopsticks away from John. He took some of the ramen and ate it. "This _is_ good!"

"Eww, Bou- san, that's like kissing John," Mai said making a face.

"Don't think about kissing me," Ayako said haughtily.

"Like I would," Takigawa said.

"What?!?" Ayako yelled. She snatched the chopsticks from Takigawa's hand and proceeded to poke him mercilessly with them. Takigawa grabbed them back.

"What exactly is that stuff?" Takigawa asked as he warded off Ayako's blows.

"Its spinach sauce," Karasu said smiling at the bowl of ramen she held in her hands. "It's my grandmothers recipe. I made it using her ingredients."

"I thought Koneko- chan made it," Masako said.

"I boiled the noodles," she said smiling proudly. Takigawa sighed.

"Are you related?" Mai asked suddenly.

Koneko smiled mysteriously. "I wish we were."

"Oh," Mai said. Karasu handed her a bowl of ramen. Mai took her chopsticks and ate it cautiously. It was very good for something that looked so appalling. When Karasu tried offering it to Naru, he refused it.

"Nani? You don't want any of our special ramen?" Koneko pouted.

"No, but I will have some tea, Mai."

"Aye, Naru."

"I hope you brought your own tea. It seems the master of the house does not enjoy caffeinated drinks from the likes of his pantry," Koneko said, with an evil smile on her face. Lin actually blanched at this statement.

"No tea?" Lin asked weakly.

"Nope!" she said happily.

Lin turned very pale. "Its okay Lin- san. I brought tea with me just in case!" Mai interjected. Koneko looked disappointed, and Lin looked extremely relived.

Koneko offered to accompany Mai to get the tea and make it. As they were walking to Mai's room, Koneko asked, "Don't you think Naru is so kawaii?"

Mai jumped. "Haha, why do you ask that?" she asked laughing anxiously.

"Oh, its so obvious you like him. It's so cute!"

"Wha- What? Where did you get that idea?" Mai asked turning a vivid red.

"Like I said, it's obvious," Koneko said laughing. Mai blushed even more.

"Is it really that obvious?"

"Yep!"

They were in front of the door to Mai's room now. "You can wait here. I'll hurry and get the tea bags."

"Okay."

Mai stepped into the room. Where had she left her suitcase? She looked around and spotted it in the far corner. She made her way over there and opened the suitcase and rummaged through her thing until she found it, and quickly left.

"You have it?" Koneko asked, a bit of hope on her voice.

"Yes I have it." Koneko's smile faded and she pouted.

Koneko sulked as they walked towards the kitchen. The kitchen was very plain for such a nice house. The cabinets and walls were of a simple wood design. It was obvious this room had been neglected in relation to the rest of the house. Mai searched through the cabinets finally finding a kettle. She filled it with water and put it on the stove stop. A few quiet minutes later the water was boiling. Mai took out a cup, put in a tea bag, and poured in some water. She water until the water turned a dark amber colour and measured out one and a half teaspoons of sugar and poured them in. Exactly how Naru liked it. She had it down to a science. Koneko lazily watched her make the tea. Mai found a small plate and put the cup on it. Koneko opened the door for her as they exited the kitchen. When they got back to the base Mai handed Naru his tea.

"You are more capable than I thought," Naru said as he took the tea. Was he complimenting or insulting her? Naru was unreadable as ever.

There was not much to do, and it was remarkably quiet. The only noises were the slight murmur of voices and the scratch of Naru's pen on the paper of his notebook. Koneko who had grown bored decided to find out why everyone had chosen their professions.

"Ayako- chan, why did you become a miko?"

"Well…" Ayako began.

"A long long time ago…" Takigawa added. Masako laughed into her kimono sleeve.

Ayako slapped him. "Watch what you say old man," she snapped. Ignoring Takigawa's protests about not being an old man she continued. She told Koneko of her childhood and the special tree.

"Hau, that's so romantic," Koneko cooed. _Romantic_. This reminded Naru of something. On the first case Mai had worked with him on, the one at the old school building he remembered she had something like that. "There's always these old buildings in schools, and ghost stories about them… it's kind of romantic, don't you think?" When she said it, it was as if she had spoken his feelings. Her words were an embodiment of how he felt. At that moment, he decided to hire her. Until then, he had only thought of her as a temporary assistant, a mere replacement for Lin. Since when had he become so sentimental, and more importantly why did he remember what she had said word for word. Naru brushed these thoughts aside. There were more important things at hand.

"If you have time to prattle about your long lost childhoods than I am sure you have time to work," Naru said.

"What would you like us to do?" Koneko smirked.

"Anything that would contribute. When you chatter like that it is distracting and I can't concentrate on _work_." For the next half hour they tried to come up with things to do, but with such inactive spirits there really was nothing to do.

"What are you doing Naru?" Mai asked looking for some inspiration.

"I am transcribing the different cases and writing out what I think to be their cause and ways to exorcise them." Mai sighed and looked out the window.

"Oh! It's snowing!" she said jumping up. She ran to the window and the others followed her except for Lin and Naru.

Koneko pressed her face against the glass. "It must be the last snow of winter."

"Let's go out and enjoy it," Ayako said to Bou- san. Bou- san nodded.

"Yes, lets enjoy it," Masako said a smile touching her lips.

"What about you Taniyama- san?" John said smiling and turning to her.

Mai looked to Lin and Naru. "I'll stay with Naru and Lin. Go enjoy yourselves," she said smiling. She was still sitting there a while later. Naru had not acknowledged her sacrifice on his behalf and honestly, she was becoming quite bored.

As if he had read her mind Naru asked, "Do you want to go outside Mai?"

She stood up quickly. "Yes," she said eagerly. Lin smiled slightly at her enthusiasm, and Mai blushed. Naru and Lin escorted her outside. It had stopped snowing but a few inches of snow covered the ground. Takigawa and most of the others were throwing snowballs. Masako and Karasu sat off to the side talking quietly. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. As Mai stepped onto the frozen lawn Takigawa threw a snowball at her. She tried to dodge it but it still hit her shoulder. She then remembered that snow was _cold_. Not to mention she was only wearing a skirt and a turtleneck. Goosebumps broke out on her arms. Suddenly something warm was lowered onto her shoulders. She turned around and realized Naru had put his coat on her.

"Naru- chan!"

"As expected, you don't dress appropriately for the weather." Mai blushed. Whenever he did something kind or nice, he had to ruin be adding some unkind comment. Mai put her arms through the sleeves. It was very warm and was made of a very soft fabric. She pulled it around her.

"Naru, won't you be cold?"

"I'm fine. I am dressed more suitably than you are."

"Mai- chan, come play with us," Takigawa called.

"No sorry." She didn't want to ruin Naru's coat or get it wet. She looked over to where Karasu and Masako were talking. She wanted to join in the conversation too, but she felt it would be rude if she interrupted them. She squatted down and ran her fingers through the snow, careful not to let naru's coat touch the ground. She abruptly had an idea. Smiling, she began to make little snow spheres. Naru watched indifferently from a bench that Lin had brushed clean from snow.

When Takigawa, Ayako, John, and Koneko finished their game they went over to where Mai was. "Oh, snow animals," Takigawa said poking one of the figures.

"Uh, they were supposed to be people. Oh well," Mai sighed.

"Who are they," Koneko asked.

"Well," Mai said. She pointed to a very large thin one. "That's Lin." A short stubby one. "Masako."

"That's me!?" Masako interrupted.

"It looks just like you," Ayako smirked. Masako glared.

"This one is John. And this is Ayako."

"Where am I and Karasu?" Koneko cried.

"Karasu and I," Naru corrected.

"Well, um, I was just making SPR members, but I'll make you two figures if you want."

"Yay!" Koneko cheered.

"Which one is Naru?" Takigawa asked.

"Oh this one."

"Naru looks lumpy," Koneko snickered. Everyone else laughed except for Naru. Even Lin was amused.

"It's time to go," Naru said suddenly beside her. He pulled Mai to her feet and dragged her after him to the house.

"Don't think you can steal my Mai- chan like that!" Takigawa yelled after him. "Just because you're young and so handsome, and I'm so old!" She heard the others laugh at that comment.

"Naru where are we going?" Mai inquired.

"I need tea," Naru said curtly. Still wearing Naru's coat Mai stumbled into the house with Lin behind her.

So Mai made Naru tea just the way he liked it. And Naru drank it without thanking her as usual. They sat there in the quiet base. The others seemed to have resumed their games and conversation again. Mai stared out the window. Naru typed on his laptop taking an occasional sip of tea. Lin watched the monitors and checked for noises. Mai felt sorry for him. It had to be tedious. She stared at Naru next to her. Had he forgotten she still had his coat. She might as well enjoy it while she had it. She pulled the coat around her snugly, relishing its warmth. A deep warmth spread throughout her body and she wearily closed her eyes. She did not know how long she had slept, but when she looked beside her, she saw Naru asleep, his notebook ajar in his lap. She picked it up in flipped through it. She instantly felt bad and put it back on his lap.

"Lin- san, where are the others?"

"I believe they are in the kitchen making dinner."

"Why didn't you go?" she questioned.

"I am busy."

"Oh."

At the moment Koneko peeked in. "Isn't Naru pulchritudinous?" she asked.

"Where are the others? Aren't you supposed to be with Karasu? And what is pulchritudinous?" Mai asked.

"I don't know what it means," she said, only acknowledging the last question. She sat down on the edge of the couch next to Naru and she pinched Naru's cheek before Mai could stop her. Naru's eyes shot open. He brushed her hand away and glared at her gleeful face.

"Was that necessary?"

"Nope! But it was amusing."

"You shouldn't be by yourself. But then again, it is not my responsibility if you get hurt," Naru said changing the subject. Before Koneko could respond, Takigawa burst through the door.

"Dinner is ready!" he announced.

"Naru," Masako said coming over to him. "I made some special curry. Would you like to try it?" She smiled shyly at him. Mai felt her blood pressure rise as she glared vengefully at Masako. At least Naru didn't trust her enough to make his tea.

Naru sighed. "If I must," he said. Mai watched as Masako gave him her curry and Naru ate it. When Naru made no comment Masako's face fell, but only a little. Mai took the onigiri Takigawa handed her. It was a bit dry, but it was still food. She watched as the others tried the onigiri, and winced slightly at the unexpected crunchiness. Despite, the mediocre food, somehow things felt pleasant like this. Mai smiled to herself before taking another bite.

**Another Author's Note (Hooray):**

I was watching some Death Note parodies. All the Death Note fangirls ( if you have read/ watched it you will know who I am talking about) love Matt. I mean he is only there for like 5 seconds. But yet he is really popular. Why do fangirls love him so much??? Why do I love him so much!?!?!?! ( I really do!) (I think it might be his clothes, they are really kawaii!)


	5. Chapter 5

**Authors Note:**

Thanks again to my beta-er Ayjah. Sorry it took me so long to update. I was rather uninspired (and lazy). But I finally got this out.

Chapter Five

It was now night. Mai followed Naru and Lin out of the base and waved goodbye to everyone. Mai waited for Naru and Lin to take their bath before she took hers. When she thought of last night she blushed. It had been so nice sleeping with Naru even if Lin had teased her. It made her feel so secure, and she had no longer been afraid of what she would dream. It also reminded her of her parents. As a child, whenever she had felt scared she had always ran into their room and squished herself between them. Even if they were asleep she still felt better, them just being there helped her. She wondered how to approach Naru about it. Lin would surely make fun of her, but that wouldn't bother her that much. What she really feared was Naru's reaction. Perhaps she could sleep with Lin? _Lin is scary even in his sleep_, she thought. As Naru came out of the shower drying his hair she was about to ask him, but she lost her nerve when he looked over at her. He motioned for her to go in as Lin had already gone. She grabbed her clothes, headed into the bathroom, and closed the door behind her, blushing severely. Lin looked over to Naru to see his reaction, but as usual Naru's face was blank and devoid of emotion. Naru sat down on the bed next to Lin. In the bathroom, Mai slumped against the door as soon as she closed it. Why did she have to be so afraid of Naru? Perhaps it was because he was so different from the other people she had met. She turned on the tap so that the water would be very hot. She wondered how Naru liked the water in his bath. She shook her violently. What was she thinking? Wondering how Naru would like his bath water… The water vapor from the tap drifted up enveloping her in a thin layer of moisture. The water droplets beaded on her skin and trickled down her arms, she lowered her self into the steaming water.

o O O o

Mai had taken a very long bath that night. She had mused over all the possible ways to approach Naru about sleeping with him, but with each one of those possibilities she imagined Naru's reaction of annoyance and dismissal. It was pointless. Giving up Mai got out of the bath, she dried herself off and put on her clothes. She opened the door to the bedroom letting all the built up steam escape. When she stepped out she saw Naru was already asleep on her bed his laptop open and still on in front of him. She smiled, he was unintentionally cute.

"Why is he on my bed?" she directed the question to Lin. Lin shrugged, but she could see a shadow of a smirk on his face. The perfect situation had arose: Naru was on her bed already asleep. But when push came to shove she couldn't bring herself to face Lin's ridicule. "Lin will you help me move him to your bed?" Lin's smirk became more obvious.

"I think he's fine there, you should tuck him in." Mai looked at Naru. He was right, Naru could go to sleep comfortably like that. She moved the laptop to the night stand and closed it. She struggled to pull back the covers Naru was sleeping on. Lin made no move to help her. She pulled him up, rested his head on the pillow, and pulled the sheets over him. She glanced toward Lin and noted he was still watching her. What was he waiting for? She climbed into her bed next to Naru.

As soon as she was done pulling the sheets over herself she heard Lin say, "You could have gone to sleep in Naru's bed." That was what Lin had been waiting for.

From Lin's position he could still see Mai's ears turn an amazing shade of red. "I like my bed," she responded weakly. With that she turned off the light, so as to avoid Lin's gaze. This didn't keep her from hearing Lin laugh. She moved over to where Naru was. She could feel him through the fabric of her pajamas. She rested his head against his shoulder and lay there for a very long time. She could not fall asleep. Suddenly she felt Naru shift under her. Mai closed her eyes and feigned being asleep, and he made a small noise when he realized what the weight on his shoulder had been. He rested his hand on her head for a brief second. She felt his muscles go limp under her suddenly, Naru was asleep already.

She fell asleep soon after. She was in an old fashioned house and was staring outside at what looked like a smaller version of the tree at Amasawa's house. This was the same place but many years ago. She softly rubbed her bulging stomach and realized she was pregnant. An old woman came up to her and handed a letter. She opened it and read. A man, Yukito, had married another woman. They had been engaged and now he was marrying another woman! She thought he had loved her. She was a disgrace to her family, pregnant and unmarried. Her parents would surely disown her and they would die of shame. She had hid it from them because she had thought that she would marry the father of her child. She had been betrayed, for perhaps a more beautiful richer woman. She felt a deep sadness overwhelm her. Her child could not be born into such a cruel world. She stood up feeling the weigh of the child in her stomach. She walked through a few rooms before she came to a room with a single futon in it and a small package next to it. She tried to bend down in an attempt to pick up the package, but the child in her stomach prevented her from reaching it easily. She sat down on the futon and reached across and picked up the parcel. She removed the cloth on it and opened the clasp. She lifted the lid and inside there was a small dagger. Mai felt her heart race in this other woman's body. _Not again, not again!_ She lifted the dagger out of the casing and held it in both of her hands. She closed her eyes and recited a short prayer. She grasped the hilt with both hands and plunged it into her beating heart. The pain was harrowing. Everything became excruciatingly sharp in her mind as she lay on the floor the blood pouring out of her chest. She felt her blood rush out of her body and saw it pool on the floor. In a short while she had lost much blood. She began to feel dizzy and lightheaded from the loss of blood and was overcome with a sense of euphoria. Her face was pressed against the cold wooden panels of the floor. She heard her heartbeat in her head and pretended it was the sound of the earth's heart beating in her ear. The beat gradually slowed down. She grasped her stomach, feeling her unborn baby kick weakly inside of her. In her last minutes a feeling of intense hate overcame her. The man she had loved had lied to her, and toyed with her feelings. He was the reason she and her child had to die. As the world faded, she cursed him and all other men on this earth who had caused her pain.

She woke up gasping. Naru was above her, his face concealed in the semi- darkness. Lin had turned on the lamp. "Mai," he said, his hands on his shoulders. "Was it one of those dreams?"

"Yes. This one was a very very long time ago. In this same area there had been a house in the traditional style. I was a young woman who was pregnant with the child of her fiancé. However, he married someone else and I, drowned in hate and sorrow, killed myself."

Naru frowned. "I wonder what spirit it is," Mai said curiously. "The other woman I dreamed about haunts the piano. The other locations are the toilet, the dining hall, and outside the dining hall."

"I think we can safely assume that the woman and her daughter who were killed are the ones inhabiting the dining room area," Naru interjected.

"So that means I dreamed about the spirit in the bathroom. But why the bathroom? The place she used to live in had been replaced with this house."

"Perhaps the bathroom reminds her of the place she died. We will examine it in the morning."

Lin, who had been watching the whole time, asked, "Are you alright Taniyama- san?"

"Oh I'm fine," she responded with a smile on her face. "I guess I was upset last time because I hadn't had those dreams in a while." Lin nodded, as if not quite convinced, and reached up and turned off the light. She heard Naru pull the covers back over himself. She imitated him, and pulled the covers over herself as well. She scooted closer to Naru, but not close enough to touch him. She closed her eyes absorbing Naru's warmth as she drifted off to sleep.

o O O o

Mai was awoken the next morning, not by Lin, but by the blinding light coming in through the window. It pierced her head with a vicious intensity. With one hand held over her eyes she managed to find her way to the window and pull the curtains shut. It was much darker now. Neither Lin nor Naru seemed to have been affected by the light coming in. Naru was definitely not a morning person. She smiled at that thought. She then wondered what time it was. She walked over to the clock on the nightstand, and bent over to check the time. It was eleven o'clock. She had really slept late today. She should wake Naru and Lin up. Mai sat on the edge of the bed so that she was looking down on Naru. "Naru," she called softly. Naru didn't answer. "Naru," she tried again a bit louder. He still didn't awake. "Naru, time to wake up," she said a third time. This time Naru stirred.

He opened his eyes. "Mai. What time is it?" He blinked his eyes several times.

"Eleven,"" she responded simply. Naru sat up and looked at Lin.

"Lin," Naru said abruptly. Lin opened one of his eyes. He glanced at Naru before opening both eyes. Mai was sitting at Naru's side, while Naru was sitting up in the bed. This reminded Lin strongly of something, but he could not remember exactly what. He got up as well.

As soon as they were ready they left to go to the base. They had fallen into something rather similar to a schedule and it was new today. So far they had not been on a case where they had done the same thing every day. It was getting rather monotonous. When they entered the base the first thing they saw was Takigawa and Ayako snuggled together on the couch sharing a nice cup of tea. Lin coughed and looked the other way, with a smirk on his face. Mai's jaw dropped and her face turned very red. Naru simply said, "Do that on your own time."

Takigawa and Ayako jumped and quickly separated, each looking equally embarrassed. Naru sat down facing the monitors and then turned around. "Why aren't you in the groups?"

"Well, um," Takigawa said. "It seems there really aren't any spirits to worry about, so they are pointless aren't they?" Naru did not respond. He turned back around and continued observing the monitor. A few minutes later he said, "Mai, when Masako comes back, we shall go to the bathroom the girl is haunting."

"Why are we waiting for Masako?" Mai asked curiously.

Naru gave her an odd look, and then said rather condescendingly, "Because she can sense spirits." Mai's mouth made an 'O'.

"Did you have another dream?" Takigawa asked.

"Yes, Naru thinks it's the spirit haunting the bathroom upstairs.

"Aw, poor Mai having scary dreams," Takigawa said as he ruffled her hair. Mai smiled good naturedly, but she wouldn't describe her visions as scary dreams.

Masako came back a while later with John and Karasu. It seemed that Masako and Karasu had become good friends, but Mai wondered what had happened to Koneko. When Masako saw Naru, she went over to him, making it look as if she was wandering aimlessly.

"Hara- san. We need to check the bathroom with you," Naru said stiffly.

Masako smiled behind her kimono sleeve. "I would be glad to help." Naru turned and motioned to Mai. Masako looked surprised but she refrained from saying anything. Mai and Masako walked on either side of Naru. They took turns glancing at each other from behind Naru's back, and when their eyes did meet, they turned away embarrassed. They went up the stairs to the second story and followed Naru around until they arrived at the bathroom. Naru opened the door and turned on the light. This bathroom was rather bare compared to the ones they had in their rooms. There was a toilet and a sink. The room was painted in gray colour and the floor was a plain wood.

"Does it appear to be in the same area, as the place in which the woman died?" Naru asked.

Mai thought about. She mentally measured the distance from the tree to the bathroom. "I think so," she answered. She looked down at the floor. "Oh, this may be a coincidence, but it's the same type of wooden floor." She knelt down and touched the wooden panels. "They are so cold too."

Naru thought about it. "Masako, do you sense anything?"

She sighed. "No it's the same. I get the vague sense of something supernatural, but I am unable to determine what it is."

They then left the room together. Mai noticed how the each kept a certain distance between them. It was as if they weren't outwardly trying to appear unfriendly, but they were awkward around each other. The way they walked, they were almost touching, but they never did quite meet. When they got back, Mai sat on the couch next to Takigawa and Ayako. She was drifting on when she heard a slight noise behind her. She turned around but no one was there. In fear she grabbed Takigawa's arm.

"Something's behind the couch," she whispered. Takigawa turned around and looked down. He laughed a bit, covering his mouth.

"What is it?" Mai asked cocking her head. Takigawa put a finger to whose lips and motioned to behind the couch. Mai turned around and looked down too. There was Koneko sleeping in the sunlight from the window outside. She was curled up into fetal position, her arms wrapped around her legs protectively.

From then on the days began to bleed into one another. The days they had been there increased, each one as unproductive as the next. Naru had become especially irritable as time had passed. The fact the tea had run out was doing nothing to help the situation. Lin had gone to the nearest store, which had been 20 miles away, in a gracious attempt to meet Naru's fastidious demands. But Naru threw out the tea saying that he would rather have no tea, than tea of such poor quality. Lin looked rather upset at this, and sulked for the rest of the day. Mai tried to stay awake but always ended up falling asleep. However, she didn't have any more of her visions.

One day after Mai finished her dinner, which had been rather good this time because she had made it, she fell asleep on the couch. When Mai next opened her eyes she heard voices. Koneko and Naru were talking somewhere behind her.

"Oliver, isn't it such a coincidence we met here?"

"I don't believe in coincidences." That was Naru. _But why did she call him Oliver?_ Mai was very confused. Had Naru been lying to them even more than she had imagined?

"Nani?!? Are you saying you took this job because I took it?"

"Why would I want to work on a case with _you_? I was suggesting that you purposely took this case because I had taken it."

"You seem to be under the impression that I enjoy your company," Koneko snapped back.

"Well, why are you still here?"

"Why are _you_ still here?"

"Because I am working here on a case," Naru replied simply.

"So am I!"

There was a few moments of silence. Then, "Do you miss Gene?"

Silence.

"When he died, I thought it was the end. Of everything. Don't you miss him?"

"I try not to dwell on the past."

Ignoring this comment she continued, "When he died did you wish, 'Why not someone else? Why him?' I did. Just once though. I actually wondered 'Why not you?' But then I decided that you really can't trade one persons life for another, and what has happened has happened. Also, I like you. I really do. Not the way I liked Gene, but I liked you nonetheless." Naru was quiet. "But the pain is still there? Did you ever feel guilty in any way? I did. You wonder why you couldn't have said or done something that would have prevented that. And then you end up blaming it on yourself."

"That's foolish."

"Is it? I know you have feelings to, even though you hide them. Everyone does. You know, it hurts more when you hide them."

"Isn't that a bit hypocritical," he returned. There was more silence.

She did not reply for a while. "It's different."

"How?"

"It just is."

"When people die, there are always things you wish you said or thing you wished you had done. I wish I could have told him how I felt, but somehow I couldn't then. You knew though, but you never told him. I don't think you liked me much. I don't think you like me now. I like you though, but you barely like anyone."

"I don't like anyone," Naru corrected.

"No," she smiled at this. "You barely like anyone."

"Your drunk. Haven't you learned you can't handle alcohol."

"I only had a glass! How could you tell?"

"First of all you reek of alcohol, and in addition to that you are saying idiotic things."

"I am not!"

"Yes you are."

"Why can't you just show admit your feelings? Aren't you sad?"

"I was, but I have accepted it and have moved on."

"You just see people as disposable! You meet them, you use them, and you move on and forget about them. They aren't real to you." Her voice was rising, and the anger in it was evident.

"That's not true. It's just that I don't form personal relations with every person I meet."

"You do your best to avoid them."

"Most people are not worth socializing with. They all seem to have a certain idea about how they should be treated and where there place in the world is and they dislike anyone who disagrees with this. They have childish views and are ignorant."

Mai heard a slamming noise. Koneko had apparently fallen off the chair. Naru sighed in annoyance. "You need to go back to your room."

"I'm fine," she said.

"If you are trying to make a fool out of yourself, its working."

"Fine I'll go back."

"You need someone to go with you. I'll take you."

"Fine." She heard the rustle of fabric as Naru got up and then their receding footsteps. Mai rolled over facing the ceiling. She was very confused. Naru was Oliver? She had never heard anyone call him Oliver before. Who was Gene? From the gist of the conversation she guessed he was someone very close to Naru. This meant that he had known Koneko when they were younger. And that Naru had been lying to them more than she had previously thought. Did Lin know? Yes Lin probably knew, after all Naru's parents and sent him to observe Naru. So both Lin and Naru had been deceiving. She felt very angry. How could Naru just lie to them like that? He probably thought he was clever, being able to trick them so easily. She suddenly hated him, she tasted bile in her mouth. He had tricked her. And all this time she had been blindly putting her faith in him. Loving him, following him, doing whatever he had asked. She felt like crying.

She looked over to the doorway and saw Naru standing up there. She sat up immediately. _When did he get back?_

"You heard?" Naru asked. Mai nodded. "What did you hear?"

"You aren't really Kazuya Shibuya. Your name is Oliver, and there is someone named Gene who died, who I presume was very close to you. You have been lying to us the entire time. We trusted you, and you lied to us." Mai glared at him, but Naru could tell by the shine in her eyes she was very close to crying.

He sat down beside her. "Would you like to know why I didn't tell you?" he asked.

Mai turned away for a second. He saw her bring her hand across her face, presumably to wipe away her tears. She turned back to him. "Yes, I would like you to tell me," she answered softly.

So he did. He told her about how he had had an identical twin brother named Eugene and how they had been orphans. They had been adopted by the Davis'. Naru was a PK- ST and had psychometry, and that Gene was a medium. Their mother did not want them to be used as test subjects for psychic research. When they were older, Naru went to college while Gene went to Japan to investigate psychic phenomena there. While in Japan he was killed in a car accident. Neither his body nor the killer were found. Naru had experienced Gene's death due to his psychometry. He left England for Japan and created the SPR in Tokyo. However, he had never found his brother's body or his killer. When he finished he looked up and was not surprised to see a tearful Mai.

"Naru, I am so sorry. I said you had never known what it feels like to die, but you saw your brother's death." The tears were now overflowing, spilling down her cheeks and onto her lap.

Mai was so sensitive, she always took other peoples pain upon herself. "It's not like you would have known," he said.

"Oh, what's psychometry?"

"If you didn't know that shouldn't you have asked earlier?" He didn't wait for her reply, but explained what psychometry was and gave her an example of it.

Mai looked down at her lap, her brows met signaling her concentration. "But things are fitting together. That time you touched the chair, we had the case where the spirits at each other, I had been wondering how you knew they played the game. You used your psychometry." Her face turned contemplative, and she subconsciously wiped away her tears. "Makato must have found out, and this is what she is blackmailing you about," she said half to herself, with a slight air of triumph. "Don't worry Naru. I won't blackmail you!" She turned to him an inculpable smile on her face. He resisted smiling back. Until then he hadn't believed in such things as "winning personalities", but there was something about her he couldn't resist.

Lin walked in then and he noted the two of them sitting on the couch together. "Naru," said in a voice she might have thought was barely audible. "Does Lin know you are Oliver?"

Naru turned away. "If he didn't already he does now." Mai blushed and turned back to her lap.

"You told her?" Lin asked harshly.

"It couldn't be helped. She heard Koneko call me that."

Lin frowned and then sighed.

"Hey!" Mai said suddenly. "Doesn't this mean the person Bou- san really admires is you?" A wide grin spread across her face, and Lin turned hiding his too. Naru simply shrugged.

**Author's Note:**

Thank you for reading. And I would like to this time to thank all my reviewers again (I love you).

I finished watching Air and Lucky Star recently, and they were quite good. Air was very very sad, and me, being the emotional person I am, cried. A lot. Lucky Star was very cute (but totally plotless). But they have cake buffets in Japan. I am so jealous. I actually looked them up online and the nearest on to me is about two hours away (I was so devastated). Anyhows, thank you again!


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note**:

Yep. Chapter 6 is finally here. I wrote it like a month ago. But I wanted to write more in it, but I didn't feel like writing. It was very blah. It is now rated M for violence. No sex, just violence.

Chapter 6

By the next morning, Mai had completely forgotten any resentment she towards Naru. She had had a peaceful sleep the night before, and she felt awful because Naru's parents and his brother had died. It was not pity, but more understanding and sympathy. Naru was not the sort of person to accept anyone's pity. She scavenged for tea bags and made tea for everyone except Naru who was still holding out. Koneko was in a sulky mood that day. She monopolized one couch for herself, while the others squished themselves onto the other couch. Her mood seem to have an effect on the entire atmosphere of the room. Everyone seemed slightly more sullen than usual.

Koneko stayed behind while the others went to get lunch. She was staring the ceiling, a frown on her face. Naru and Mai were the first ones back.

"Koneko, your food," Mai said with a smile on her face, in an attempt to cheer the girl up. She took the food and sat up on the couch. After taking a small bite she put it down on the floor and lay back down. Naru sat down in front of the monitors and picked up the book Karasu had left to move it out of the way. Naru froze the book in his hand.

"Naru," Mai cried rushing over to him. "What is it?"

"Karasu," he said faintly. Koneko jumped up, knocking the bowl over. The food spilled onto the floor as she ran out of the room.

"Naru what did you see?" Mai cried frantically. Without answering Naru grabbed her hand and pulled her after him as he ran out of the room and into the hallway. Koneko was out of sight. As they were running they saw Lin and the others at the end of the corridor. Naru slowed down, and stopped in front of Lin.

"Where is Karasu?" he asked, slightly breathless.

Lins' eyes widened. "She went to the dining hall, why?" But Naru was already gone, running toward the dining hall with Mai behind him. Lin stood there for a few seconds watching them.

"Lin, what's happened?" Takigawa asked. Ignoring them Lin broke out into a run following Naru, leaving the others confused and Masako wondering why Naru was _holding_ Mai's hand.

As they ran through the sunlit hall leading to the dining hall, Mai heard a piercing scream from ahead. At the same time she heard a noise to the side. She stopped while Naru continued running, still holding her hand. The result was Mai on the floor. She looked up to see where the noise had come from, and barely had time to cover her head. Glass rained down, like perfect shards of ice. Mai felt the glass cut into her skin, some embedding itself into her. When she was sure it was over she lifted her head up. Lin ran in then.

"Naru, are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Naru said as he brushed the glass off his coat. "Go check on Karasu and Koneko." Lin nodded and ran towards the dining hall. Mai used the windowsill to pull herself back up. She gasped slightly as she cut herself on a piece of glass, but ignored the pain. She stared at herself. She was cut and blood was dribbling down her skin. She pulled out the bits of glass where she could see them. She felt as if she had been pierced with a million needles. Naru watched her.

"I'm fine," she said. "I think Karasu is worse." She stumbled towards the door. Everything began to warp. She pulled herself past the window. She leaded against the wall, smearing blood on it. Why was she so tired suddenly? She tried to stand up again, but fell against the wall. She began to cry, overwhelmed by her helplessness. She fell to the ground leaving red streaks, like an artist's brushstrokes, on the wall. Naru caught her before she hit the ground.

"Mai!" He said sharply.

"Just let me sleep," she said soflty, before closing her eyes. Naru deposited her gently on the ground before heading to the dining hall. The scene was worse then his vision had shown him. In one corner of the room the girl lay on the ground, her blood splattered on the walls and seeping over the floor. Her once colourless body, was now sickeningly overwhelmed with colour. The vivid blood everywhere. Lin knelt over her. On the other side was the statuesque Koneko, her hands pressed to her face and her mouth still open in a silent scream.

"Naru, we need material to make tourniquets out of. She's cut everywhere." Lin had already torn parts of his shirt and had used them to cover the wounds and limit the blood flow. Naru took the tablecloth from the nearby table and began ripping it into pieces.

"Oh my God." Naru turned to see Takigawa standing at the entrance to the hallway, Ayako was behind him looking stunned. John caught up and simply stared in shock. Masako, the last to arrive, covered her mouth with her hand.

"Help," Naru ordered. Wordlessly they joined him, and began tearing the tablecloth to strips. Naru took some of the pieces to Lin and handed them to him. "Will she live?"

"The wounds aren't too deep. She will probably live." As Naru bent over to help Lin he heard an almost inaudible tapping to his side. He looked over and saw that it was blood dripping onto the floor. It was from Koneko. She had her fingernails dug into her skin and blood flowed out of wounds. He pulled her hand away from her face. She was very tense and it seemed as if she had been frozen into the position, her eyes wide and her mouth open.

"What wrong with her," Lin said, narrowing his eyes, as he continued to bandage the injured girl in front of him.

"Traumatic shock, I believe."

"And Mai?"

"She's fine." Lin finished bandaging her and wiped his forehead, leaving a streak of half dried blood.

"Where's the nearest hospital?" Naru asked.

"A good ten miles from here. They also don't have an ambulance, so it would be probably faster for us to take them ourselves."

"Takigawa," Naru said sharply. "We need your van."

"Okay," he concurred, still looking slightly shaken. It was very like Naru to be perfectly composed in a situation like this. There were very few times when he lost his temper or let something get to him. Most of those involved Mai. Lin lifted the girls body and carried her out of the room.

"Take Koneko," Naru ordered. Takigawa wrapped his arms around her, lifted her and followed Lin out of the room. "Help them, I'll take Mai," he directed Masako and Ayako. They ran ahead. He turned to John. "Will you tell Amasawa that some of our members have been injured and not to go into the dining hall." John. He retrieved Mai from the hallway floor and carried her to the van. Karasu was laid down in the back of the van, while Koneko and Mai were strapped down in the middle seats. Takigawa and Ayako drove them to the hospital, while Lin, Masako, and Naru went in Lin's van. Masako blushed as she took her seat beside Naru. She wanted him to say something but Naru was as quiet as ever.

She decided to break the silence. "I didn't sense the spirit, but I might have been to far away. Do you think it was a person?"

"Unlikely." Silence again. Masako began to wish that she had never blackmailed Naru. She preferred to think of it as exchanging favours.

In the van ahead of them, Ayako and Takigawa looked ahead in determined silence. John sat in the back, with the unconscious Karasu. As they turned a corner, they heard Koneko's head hit the window with a sickening thud. They both winced.

"So…" Takigawa said glancing over at her. "Want to get coffee when we are done with this case.

"Sure." She smiled to herself. John, however, was feeling rather nervous and uncomfortable.

Mai was dreaming. She was back in the house. It was as if she was watching an old movie. Everything was black and white and had a blotchy feel to it. A man and a woman appeared, it was their wedding. They wore old fashioned clothes as did the people around them. She watched as they gently kissed, and a blush spread across the brides face. It was a year later. A strange man showed up at their house disguised as a servant. He and the wife went into a room and shut the door behind them. The husband found out from one of the servants, who had noted the strange man with his wife. Mai watched in horror as the man retrieved his ceremonial sword. The couple was dining alone in the dining hall. Suddenly the man brought up the topic of a stranger being seen in the house. The wife froze, the chopsticks halfway to her lips. The man pulled the sword out from under the table. She jumped up to escape, but she was too slow. He began hacking at her side with the sword. Blood sprayed, staining his clothes. She fell to floor crying and screaming. She begged for his forgiveness, grabbing onto his leg and pressing her face against it. He let out a maniacal laugh and kicked her, sending her flying in the wall. She lay there moaning as he strode over. He began slashing at her back and side. Mai realized with horror he was trying to keep her alive as long as possible, to make her feel the pain. She tried to get up but crumpled on the ground. As she gasped for breath, blood trickled from the corner of her lip. Deciding it was over, the man kicked her so that she was on her back. He took the sword and stabbed it through her heart. Blood gushed forth like a small fountain. He turned toward the door and saw one of the maids there. Hands over her mouth, eyes wide in shock. "You- you killed her!"

Mockingly he said, "I- I- I killed her." Before she could move, the man strode over and grabbed her by her hair. He threw her to the ground, and yanked her head up.

"You don't deserve to be alive. Women are useless repulsive creatures who torture men for fun."

The young woman was crying now. "Sir, I swear I've never done anything done hurt anybody."

"Liar!" He threw her back down. "Clean it up." Her eyes widened even more as she lifted up her head and stared at the bloody spectacle. He kicked her. "Did you hear me?" His voice was now low, with a dangerous edge. She got up quickly, slipping a bit on the blood on the floor. She ran out the room and returned with a mop and wooden bucket of water. She mopped up all the blood, and cleaned it off the wall, as the man watched coldly. "Take it outside." She glanced around, not realizing what he was saying, until her eyes fell upon her mistresses body. Mai saw her face distort in fear, and the perspiration form on her body dampening her clothes. Nonetheless, ignoring her now dried tears, she grabbed the arms of the woman and dragged her out of the hall, and through a few rooms before she was outside. It was raining, which would erase all traces of the blood. She looked back inside and realized she had left a trail of blood. She went back into the hall where her master was still standing. She began to clean up the track of blood, she body had left behind. The iron scent filled her nose and for a brief second she was overwhelmed. She looked at the mop she clasped in her hands, which was now stained a dark red with her handprints. She dropped to the floor, sobbing harder than before. She heard his slow heavy footsteps approaching her. She quickly lifted herself back up using the mop. She began cleaning again, trying to ignore his presence as he approached her. "When your done come outside." And he passed her following the trail of blood. She wondered if she should run away, but he would surely find her and punish her. Would she end up like her mistress. Cold electric fear ran through her body. Bracing herself she continued to mop up the blood. She ended up at the door which lead outside. She opened it and poured the red- coloured water into the damp grass. She then jumped over the puddle and into the misty rain. She saw her master on the far side of the garden and walked over there. He was holding a shovel.

"Dig." He commanded. She dug. Dirt mixed with tears, rain, and blood. She was not used to such work and it went by slowly. Much later she stood in a three foot hole legs splattered with dirt and her clothes stained with mud. She was exhausted and it was close to dusk. It was hard to tell in such weather, but it was definitely darker than before. She pulled herself out of the ditch. He was still there. He pointed to an area next to the first hole. _Another one?!_ She could feel her heart pound inside her chest. _What for?_ She stared at him, with a questioning look on her face. "Are you going to do it?" his voice menacing. She began to dig, pulling up dirt and grass. It went even slower this time. It was now twilight. She kneeled in the hole, her breathing heavy. She finally pulled herself out and lay at the edge, not caring if she got her face dirty. He stepped out of the house holding something in his hands. _When had he gone in?_ She got up, and began walking towards him. She stopped in front of him. "Why are you leaving?" he asked a twisted smile on his face.

"What do you mean?" she choked out. He lifted up what he was holding and she saw with horror it was a knife. Backing up, she cried out, "What are you doing? I did everything I asked you to! I won't tell anyone, I swear, I swear!" She was now in front of one of the graves. The man stabbed the knife through her chest. She stood there looking stunned. As if in a trance, she touched her wound. She lifted up her hand and looked at her bloody fingers as she fell to her knees. Blood overflowed her mouth and trickled down her face, and neck, and onto her clothes. She coughed once, spraying blood onto the pants leg in front of her. Her head fell back and the rest of her body followed, and she landed in her own grave. She was still alive as she saw the dirt being thrown onto her, slowly covering her vision. Suddenly Mai was back to the man who had killed the servant and his wife. He was alone eating dinner in the dining hall. From behind a slightly opened door another man was watching him. It was the same man that had visited his wife, he had a knife. He opened the door and approached the master of the house. Behind his back he held the knife. The other man ignored him as he approached. He looked up at the last second to see the knife find its mark in his heart.

The projector suddenly stopped and all went dark. _Wait what projector?_ The lights suddenly came back on. _That was a movie? _Mai was confused. Hadn't she smelled the blood, the mud, and the rain. Or perhaps she had simply imagined it. It was over now. She looked around and saw Dream Naru next to her.

"Naru!" she cried out smiling slightly. It had been a while sense she had seen him in her dreams. He smiled back and took her hand.

"I'm sorry if it scared you. It was important to show you this."

"Why," Mai asked. "Is one of them the ghost in the dining room? Was in the servant girl? Was it the man?" Dream Naru was fading and so was the theatre around her. "Naru!" she cried out, but she was now entering a dreamless sleep.

Ayako and Takigawa heard Mai cry out for Naru in her sleep. They both began to laugh. "Poor Naru doesn't know what he is missing," Takigawa smirked. John wondered if they even knew he was there.

They arrived at the hospital and John ran ahead to tell the staff. As Lin began to take Karasu out, some nurses rushed over with two stretchers followed by a panting John. Lin was brushed aside by the stern nurses and they pulled Karasu out of the car and onto the stretcher. Mai was put on the other one, and one of the nurses left to get one for Koneko. As one of them walked by Naru caught the sent on ammonia. They handled everything matter of factly, and were as sterile and stiff as the uniforms they put on every morning. No questions were asked, nor were any words exchanged. It just simply happened. A harried looking doctor came out of the building and approached Lin.

"What happened? The young girl looks like she was attacked. And the other girls?" He said this very quickly, as if there was a time limit.

Naru answered. "She was attacked. One of the girls suffered some sort of trauma and the other was hurt by falling glass."

The doctor turned to him. "We need their names." He pulled a pen and a small notebook, similar to Naru's out of one of his pockets.

"The girl hurt by falling glass was Mai Taniyama. I do not know the names of the other girls who arrived with us."

"How can you not know their names?" the doctor shot back.

"When they introduced themselves, they used only first names, and I believe it is safe to presume they are pseudonyms. They are in no way associated with me or my company, except for the fact we were working together on a case." Naru returned coolly.

"A case?" The doctor narrowed his eyes.

"We were investigating Amasawa's house for psychic phenomena."

The doctor snorted derisively. "You _those_ type of people. I'll tell you I don't believe in such things. There is a scientific explanation for everything."

"Shouldn't you be taking care of the patients?" Naru cut in.

The other man narrowed his eyes. "The younger girl is being treated by our other doctor right now. That Taniyama is being bathed by the nurses, and as for the other, there is not much we can do for her. I will be needing your name, and the name of your company."

"My name is Kazuya Shibuya and I am the CEO of Shibuya Psychic Research." When Naru said CEO the doctor snorted, but recorded this on his paper.

"If you'll excuse me, I need to go and take care of Taniyama."

Turning to face the other members of the SPR, Naru asked, "Was anyone else hurt?"

"I think Masako was cut by some glass." John turned to Masako with a concerned look on his face.

She blushed when Naru looked at her. "They were just small cuts. One on my hand and on my neck."

"They'll take a look at it at the hospital." Naru began walking towards the entrance and the others followed.

"Isn't Koneko a bit old to be called a girl?" Takigawa asked as the entered the building.

"How old do you think she is?" Naru slightly raised on of his eyebrows.

"Twenty?"

"I would estimate she is in her mid to late teens."

"What? She's taller than me! And she looks older than Mai." Naru said nothing. "Could she be eighteen?"

"How would I know?"

A nurse approached them as they walked down the hall. "Is one of you Naru?" She unlike the other nurses wore a bright pink, that left one somewhat blinded.

"Me, why?" Naru asked.

"The doctor appeared behind the nurse. "I thought you said your name is Kazuya Shibuya."

"It is."

"We call him Naru, because he is a narcissist!" Takigawa added.

The nurse smiled. "Miss Taniyama wanted you."

"She's awake?"

"Not really."

"I see, I see," Takigawa laughed. "She was calling out for you in her sleep."

"She is fine now," the nameless doctor interjected. "We stitched her up and cleaned up the minor cuts. We also gave her a small injection of platelets to increase clotting in the open wounds."

At that moment Mai came out of one of the rooms rubbing her eyes sleepily. She was barefoot and the only thing she was wearing was a small hospital gown. She looked at the people before her and saw the real Naru. She looked away blushing.

"Mai where are your clothes?" Takigawa asked looking pointedly at her.

"Eh?! Where are my clothes?!"

The nurse let out a small laugh. "They are being washed."

"Oh." Mai looked outside. "Its dark. How long was I asleep?"

"A very long time. It looks like we will have to stay here tonight. A camp out in the waiting room!" Takigawa seemed to be the only pleased at this prospect.

The doctor looked at them disapprovingly. "I am afraid Taniyama can not. She will have to sleep in one of the rooms for patients. She is still in fragile health and her wounds will be easily aggravated.

As the nurse in pink guided Mai away from the others, Mai asked, "How is Karasu- chan?"

"She is doing much better. It was a good thing those cuts weren't as deep as they could have been." Before leaving the room she turned to the others, " My name is Minako, so if you have any questions feel free to ask me."

"I don't want to sleep on wooden benches," Masako pouted.

"You can sleep in the van outside. In the cold weather. On the blood stained seats."

Masako shivered visibly and resigned herself to wooden benches and an aching body. She sat down on one of them, noting the inflexible harshness of the material under her. Naru sat down on the bench opposite her. She smile at him, he simply stared at her for a second before looking away. She felt somewhat disappointed but then again, Naru had never smiled at anybody. At least not that she knew of. She wondered whether he had smiled at Mai. _No_, she told herself, Naru couldn't fall for a girl like her. Naru pulled out his notebook, then looked back at her.

"Did you sense the spirit Hara- san?"

"No, but it was probably because I was not close enough. When I arrived at the scene, the presence was in its usual state." Naru wrote this down and then closed the notebook and put it away. The conversation had ended. Every time she tried to talk to him it came to nothing. She wished she could be like Mai and be carefree and annoying, well maybe not annoying. She heard whispering and saw Ayako and Takigawa in a corner talking about something that was evidently amusing. Out of the corner of her eye she saw John. She had almost forgotten he was there. He seemed to have realized that he was pretty much forgotten, and was staring off into space in an almost bored way. Near Naru was Lin who also looked bored. She got up and everyone glanced at her for a brief second before looking away. She left the room, feeling them watching her out of the corner of their eyes. As soon as she left the room she realized she didn't know where she was going. A bathroom might be nice. She didn't know where the bathroom was though. Masako wandered through the empty halls until she found she bathroom. It was large and empty. She wondered why someone would build such a large hospital in the middle of nowhere. She rinsed her hands and squeezed some soap out of the dispenser before scrubbing her hands and rinsing off the grime. As she reached up to grab a paper towel she saw her reflection in the mirror. She dried her hands off and the paper fell to the floor as she brought her hands to her face. She found herself quite beautiful with her porcelain skin and pretty eyes. She doubted Naru would like a girl just for her beauty, but she was intelligent as well. She could imagine herself at Naru's side as his loyal wife, almost as intelligent, and equal in beauty. Why couldn't Naru see that? She was perfect. What was Mai? _Nothing!_ She told her self. _Mai is nothing, she is a mere assistant, a nothing_. She backed away from the mirror still staring at herself. She turned away, and as gracefully as she could manage, she swooped down and grabbed the paper towel off the floor. She threw it into the trashcan as she exited the room. She could not remember the way she had come so she wandered randomly through the corridors before the rediscovered the waiting room. Naru and Lin were still awake. John was either asleep or very close to it, and Ayako and Takigawa were sleeping, resting on one another. Naru didn't even glance at her when she entered, while Lin spared her a second of his time, so as to ascertain who she was.

She sat back down on the bench. She wondered how she could ever go to sleep in such an uncomfortable place. Not only was she being asked to sleep and an uncomfortable wooden bench, but she was in a hospital. The smell of ammonia was powerful, but it could not block out everything. There was still the smell of antiseptic and nameless medicines, and perhaps the slightest tinge of blood in the air. She had always hated hospitals and it didn't help she was not exactly the most healthy person. She tried to move her body into a more comfortable position, but nothing seemed to help. After trying several stances, she gave up and returned to sitting normally. _Even a hospital bed would be more comfortable than this_. Somehow she managed to fall asleep despite her unpleasant conditions. Between fits of sleep she had a few brief seconds of consciousness. When she awoke she had a sudden flash of memories from those periods of consciousness: a lifeless girl in a wheelchair, being moved down the corridor by an equally lifeless nurse, a handsome man walking away, and lastly a cart being rolled down the corridor by a woman with a face she couldn't make out. She was initially shocked by the precipitous flood of memories, but collected herself. She closed her eyes and reviewed the memories mentally. They meant nothing to her. Had she dreamed them? She opened her eyes and stared at the empty seat across from her. Initially, she knew something was slightly off, but it was a minute before she realized exactly what. Naru had left. That probably explained the man she saw walking away. Where was he?

**Author's Note**:

What a horrible way to end. I would like to thank Ajyah for putting up with my crappy grammar and spelling. And you for reading. Please review. Thank you! (By the way Princess Tutu is a wonderful anime if you are interested.)


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